Dater Montessori School / Friends of Dater Montessori, Teacher Training in the Dater Montessori

General Grants Awarded in State Fiscal Year 2006

During the summer, 2005, and winter, 2006 grant cycles, the OEEF funded the following eighteen projects, for a total of $754,839.00.

City of Struthers, “City of Struthers Storm Water Outreach Program,” $45,503.00, Mahoning County, Audience: General Public and Regulated Community, #06G-003, Contact: Danny Thomas, [email protected], 330-755-2181.

Provides a comprehensive city-wide storm water education campaign, including information on water conservation and proper disposal of common household materials, with the objective of reducing water pollution in the Mahoning River and Yellow Creek Watershed. Components include workshops, brochures, presentations, posters, newspaper and radio ads, a video and Website, with themes changing quarterly. Additional components will target city businesses in an effort to reduce illegal discharges. Collaborators include the City Health Department and Water Pollution Control Department, Eastgate Council of Regional Governments, Mahoning County Recycling, Mahoning Soil and Water Conservation District, URS Corporation and Youngstown State University.

Columbus Downtown Development Corporation, “The Urban/Environmental Interface: RiverSouth Exhibits,” $41,000.00, Franklin County, Audience: General Public and Regulated Community, #06G-012, Contact: Brian Ezzell, [email protected], 614-939-8070.

Provides a series of interactive exhibits on the relationship between urban land use, air and water quality, natural habitat and the built environment. CDDC will host three charettes (citizen focus group meetings) to solicit suggestions on indoor and outdoor downtown exhibits featuring the Scioto River and storm water issues, Columbus Air Quality, Wildlife in the City, Brownfield Redevelopment and Green Building Techniques. A Developer’s Toolkit exhibit/tour and Remodeler’s Manual will provide up to 500 real estate developers and representatives of the construction and remodeling industry with information on how to renovate an historic building (the former Lazarus department store in downtown Columbus) to be certified under the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System. Collaborators include Audubon 2

Ohio, Columbus Development and Public Utilities Departments, Ohio Department of Development Office of Energy Efficiency, Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife, and Ohio EPA Public Interest Center.

Washington State Community College – Child Development Center, “Evergreen Environmental Education Project”, $36,927, Washington County, Audience: Pre-K – University, (Pre-school and university), #06G-014, Contact: Linda Novak, [email protected], 740-374-8716.

Provides an outdoor classroom area and activities for 200 pre-school children, as well as professional development and curriculum alignment workshops for 100 in-service teachers and university faculty working with this age group. Also provides 50 undergraduate pre-service teachers enrolled in early childhood education with observation and practicum experience in designing nature-based lessons that meet state academic content standards.

Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, “Greenways Program Pilot Prairie Project,” $50,000.00, Franklin and Contiguous Counties, Audience: General Public, #06G-015, Contact: Andrea Gorzitze, [email protected], 614-233- 4124.

Seeks to reduce the use of fertilizers and pesticides, and the frequency of lawn mowing and irrigation, by providing information on lawn-to-prairie conversions to individuals who make landscaping decisions for large corporate, municipal, airport and golf course properties. Through demonstration projects that will convert at least six acres of streamside property from lawn to native prairie habitat, the Greenways Program seeks to help Central Ohio reduce ozone and fine particulates in the air, and reduce non-point source pollution into streams. Collaborators include Ashland, Inc., the Columbus and Franklin County MetroParks, the City of Dublin, COSI, Central Parking, Columbus College of Art and Design, the Wild Ones, Ohio Parks and Recreation Association, the Ohio Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, and the consulting firm of EMH&T.

Wyandot Elementary School, Dublin City Schools, “P.O.N.D. (People, Water, Nature, Diversity)”, $44,388.00, Franklin County, Audience: Pre-K through University, (Elementary), #06G-016, Contact: Sharon Buda, [email protected], 614-761-5840.

Involves 587 students and 52 staff members in restoring and monitoring riparian habitat around a half-acre pond on the school grounds, working in collaboration with a series of artists-in-residence to trace the impact of water quality in the pond, through the stream into which it feeds, and on to 3

the Scioto River, Ohio River, and Gulf of Mexico. Students will work with children’s author Ron Hirschi; write poetry about what they learned by working with a professional poetry group, Poetry Alive!; write songs and perform with composer Celeste Friedman; work with artist Amy Yaich to create murals; work with another artist to create metal sculptures; and document on a Website and in community presentations what they have learned about how their actions impact others, their community, and the global environment. Project builds on an award-winning multi-year program at Tussing Elementary in Pickerington, funded by OEEF.

Sandusky River Watershed Coalition, “Agricultural Quality Assurance Assessment Training”, $46,135.00, Seneca County (Sandusky River Watershed), Audience: Regulated Community, #06G-023, Contact: Christopher Riddle, [email protected], 419-334-5016.

Customizes and reprints the Producer Self-Assessment Program created by the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation with a previous OEEF grant, to assist agricultural producers in the Sandusky River Watershed to more effectively participate in the federal Conservation Securities Program and other farm bill programs promoting best management practices. Provides local case studies and training sessions for small groups of farmers to assess their own practices, showing how to maximize protection of environmental quality while maintaining profitable operations. The Sandusky River Watershed Coalition is a cooperative effort of over 120 local partner organizations, including soil and water conservation districts, the federal Natural Resources Conservation Service, and OSU Extension.

Cuyahoga Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), “Linking Middle School Teachers to Web-Based Water Quality Resources Aligned with New State Science Standards”, $49,998.00, Cuyahoga County, Audience: Pre-K through University, (Middle School), #06G-024, Contact: Frank Wilson, [email protected], 216-739-3993.

Seeks to improve environmental science teaching in Cleveland public schools, by revising the Cuyahoga SWCD’s 1995 Water Quality Handbook and companion video, and aligning these materials with the Ohio Department of Education’s Academic Content Standards. The project will employ master teachers who have graduated from the Mathematics and Science Partnership Program to create reality-based online environmental science programs for teachers and students in grades 4-8. The new DVD, television and Web-based programs will incorporate activities from national curricula such as Project WET and Healthy Water, Healthy People. Collaborators include WVIZ / PBS Ideastream and the Cleveland Municipal School District, with advisors from the Cuyahoga Remedial Action Plan, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, 4

Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, and the Regional Alliance for Informal Science Educators. Bowling Green State University, “EXCITE Odyssey,” $49,971.00, Lucas, Putnam, Sandusky and Wood Counties, Audience: Pre-School – University (Middle and High School), #06G-033, Contact: Jodi Haney, [email protected], 419-372-7361.

EXCITE (Environmental Health Science Explorations through Cross- disciplinary and Investigative Team Experiences) is a seven-year program funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to provide problem-based learning modules on local environmental health issues in Northwest Ohio. The modules are field-tested, expert-reviewed, interdisciplinary, and aligned with state and national standards. The program received a 2006 Children’s Environmental Health Recognition Award from US EPA. OEEF funding will provide two new modules and professional development workshops for 120 5th- 12th grade Ohio teachers, and the opportunity for their students to present their work in an EXCITE Colloquium at COSI-Toledo.

Ohio University, “Improving Environmental Awareness of Water, Waste, and Land Issues in Appalachian Ohio (WWL Ohio) through a High School Student Contest of Computer-Simulated Environmental Models,” $48,200.00, Athens and Meigs Counties, Audience: Pre-K through University (High School), #06G-036, Contact: Chang Liu, [email protected], 740-593-1249.

WWL (water, waste, land) Ohio uses “Alice”, an educational 3-D Authoring and Modeling System developed by Carnegie Mellon University, to help students at Athens and Meigs High Schools better understand the local environmental issues related to acid mine drainage, septic system maintenance and coal mine reclamation. The students will create and use three-dimensional models to simulate environmental impacts. The winners in a contest of these models will then create accompanying exhibits for display of their models in public libraries to help educate local residents.

The Ohio Wildlife Center (OWC), “Seasons of Change: Ohio Wild Animal, Wild Habitat Learning Adventures for Second Grade Students”, $42,532.00, Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Licking, Madison, Marion, Morrow, Pickaway, and Union Counties, Audience: Pre-school through University (Grade 2), #06G-046, Contact: Barbara Ray, [email protected], 614-734-9453.

Provides classroom visits and field trips on Ohio native animals and habitats for more than 500 second grade students in 22 classrooms. In the pilot project, participating teachers will help OWC create and field test inquiry-based and hands-on activities and supply/resource kits which will then be available to other teachers.in 58 school districts in nine counties. An on-line environmental education network will be created for 300 teachers and science curriculum administrators offering trainings, 5

resources, and opportunities at OWC to help integrate environmental education into their lesson plans. All programs will be correlated to the Ohio Academic Content Standards. Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks are collaborating.

Wright State University, “Web-based Education for Sanitarians,” $50,000.00, Statewide, Audience: Regulated Community, #06G-047, Contact: Janet Rickabaugh, [email protected], 937-258-5555.

Provides web-based educational resources and online learning modules to help environmental health professionals achieve certification as Registered Sanitarians in Ohio. Issues include food safety, drinking water quality, air quality, noise, industrial and land pollution, sewage disposal, hazardous and toxic substances, and solid waste management. The State Board of Sanitarian Registration is collaborating.

Fisher-Titus Medical Center, “Safe Sharps Disposal for Home-Based Sharps Users,” $14,295.00, Erie, Huron, Lorain Counties, Audience: General Public, #06G-048, Contact: Lisa Myer, [email protected], 419-668-8101, ext. 6302.

Provides an outreach program to educate home sharps (syringes) users about the health dangers related to unsafe sharps disposal into the waste stream, and to provide alternative disposal methods. Project seeks to reduce the potential risk to waste management disposal workers and housekeeping personnel serving public areas, like restrooms in public buildings and parks. Collaborators include the Huron County Commissioners, Norwalk Furniture Corporation, Huron County Health District, American Diabetes Association, Kiwanis Club, Prime Care Group and Ohio EPA Division of Solid and Infectious Waste Management.

The Ohio State University Extension Service, Madison County, “The Madison County Watershed Monitoring Education Project,” $45,514.00, Madison County, Audience: Pre-school through University (High School), #06G-051, Contact: Eric Imerman, [email protected], 740-852-0975.

Water quality education project for 350 high school agricultural/FFA students, who will learn to monitor the Little Darby Creek, Deer Creek, and Paint Creek. Monthly samples gathered from the three watersheds will be analyzed for fertilizer and herbicide content resulting from non-point source pollution. Students will help to create educational materials for farmers and residents in the watersheds. Collaborators include FFA Chapters at London City Schools, Tolles Career and Technical Center and Madison Plains Schools.

Ecological Design Innovation Center, “Full Circle Learning: Linking Local Foods and Composting Education,” $49,000.00, Lorain County, Audience: Pre- school-University (Elementary and College), #06G-054, Contact: Brad Masi, 6 [email protected]

Establishes an all-season vermi-composting demonstration and learning station that will process food waste from Oberlin College dining halls. Hands-on activities for visiting K-5 students will be aligned with Ohio standards, and applied research and monitoring information from the project will be incorporated into several courses at the college. A two-day training will be offered for low-income, inner-city residents participating in an Urban Market Gardeners program in Cleveland on how to use restaurant and microbrewery organic wastes and a composting method that works in confined spaces to restore the productivity of urban lands to generate foods for local markets. The station will also be used to teach local farmers about composting and straw-bale construction methods. Collaborators include the City of Oberlin, Oberlin Public Schools, the Great Lakes Brewing Company, OSU Extension, and Heifer Project International.

Sunday Creek Associates, “Little Cities of the Forest: From Stakeholders to Stewards,” $50,000.00, Athens, Hocking, Morgan, Perry Counties, Audience: General Public, #06G-056, Contact: Andrew Bashaw, [email protected], 740-767-3348.

Builds on a previous OEEF mini grant that created environmental history tours in the Little Cities of Black Diamonds (LCBD) region of the Hocking Valley coal fields. The new project targets residents of these former mining communities and environmental resource professionals, to explore ways to restore and protect the local environment, while encouraging sustainable eco-tourism as an economic development tool. Project includes publication of At The Glacier’s Edge to document environmental history and ongoing restoration efforts in the region. The Sunday Creek Associates will offer three free day-long, hands-on natural heritage tours, and several community forums to discuss the environmental future of the region as well as restoration and redevelopment issues. Project findings will be shared with natural resource professionals at the Ohio Hill Country Heritage Area retreat. Collaborators include the Little Cities of Black Diamonds Council, Hocking College School of Natural Resources, Monday Creek Restoration Project, New Straitsville Improvement Committee, the Maxwell Family Trust, Ohio University Department of Geography and Institute for Local Government and Regional Development, Rural Action Sustainable Forestry, Southern Local School District/Miller High School, SPICYAM, Sunday Creek Watershed Group, SPUR, Wayne National Forest, OSU Extension Cooperative Education Watershed, ODNR Division of Forestry, Ohio Department of Education, Ohio Hill Country Heritage Area and Perry and Athens County Litter Prevention and Recycling Programs. 7

Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District, “Franklin SWCD Storm Drain Model Project,” $16,789.00,” Franklin County, Audience: General Public, #06G- 061, Contact: Nora Hiland, [email protected], 614-486-9613.

Creates a storm drain model and accompanying materials about best management practices that can be used at public events and local trainings of small business owners. The model will have running water and interchangeable backdrops to illustrate residential and commercial activities and show the connection between run-off down storm drains and water quality in local streams.

Miami University, Hefner Zoology Museum, “The GREEN Teachers Institute: Museum Resources for Teachers”, $33,172.00, Butler, Clermont, and Hamilton Counties, Audience: Pre-School – University (Pre-School), #06G-063, Contact: Dr. Donald Kaufman, [email protected], 513-529-4617.

Adds a new early-childhood component and a second session to a successful series of summer workshops for K-8 teachers that has won several Outstanding Project awards from the OEEF. Workshops and follow-up sessions during the academic year focus on using natural history and science resources to offer hands-on, inquiry-based student activities in non-classroom settings. Collaborators include the Clermont Educational Service Center, Mason City Schools, Hamilton City Schools, and Talawanda City Schools.

Cleveland Public Art, “WindWorks,” $41,415.00,” Cuyahoga County, Audience: General Public, #06G-068, Contact: Greg Peckham, [email protected], 216-621-5330

Provides an outdoor wind turbine exhibit at the Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland, to educate the general public about the connection between their daily, everyday energy choices and the possibility of a more sustainable future of wind power for the region. Two pedestrian pathways will trace the shadow of the wind turbine on the day of the equinox, and bench sculptures at the base of the turbine will illustrate how the wind turbine could power everyday objects such as televisions and light bulbs for one hour. Collaborators include the Great Lakes Science Center.

For more information, contact: Ohio EPA, Office of Environmental Education P.O. Box 1049 Columbus, OH 43216-1049 (614) 644-2873 email: [email protected] Web site: www.epa.state.oh.us 8